Change of heart? Artest rethinking not opting out

Links (13)

Maybe Ron-Ron Should Stop Emailing Reporters?
Published 7/1/2008 by Ziller at Sactown Royalty
... The warm feelings lasted a long, long time. Artest told ESPN.com on Tuesday that he wishes now he had opted for unrestricted free agency, like Brand and Davis, instead of electing to play out the final year of his contract with the Kings next season at $7.4 million. Artest also conceded that his long-term future is likely not in Sacramento, saying via e-mail: "I don't see myself with [the] Kings beyond 2008-09. "I think I made the biggest mistake by staying in my contract and I have to live with it," Artest said. "I had some misleading ...

Artest now says it was a ‘mistake’ to NOT opt out
Published 7/1/2008 by LD2k at The Lakers Nation
Well, like we’ve all been saying, Ron finally realized he made a huge mistake in not opting out. He would have been a perfect fit with the Lakers… ESPN: “I don’t see myself with [the] Kings beyond 2008-09. “I think I made the biggest mistake by staying in my contract and I have to live with it,” Artest said. “I had some misleading information [in making the] decision on not opting out. [But] I still thank G-d for all his blessings and being able to play basketball and ...

Baron Davis moves closer to being a Clipper
Published 7/2/2008 by Kelly Dwyer at Ball Don't Lie
... has developed some cold feet. Artest told Marc Stein via email that, he thinks he "made the biggest mistake by staying in my contract and I have to live with it. I had some misleading information [in making the] decision on not opting out." ...

Baron Davis moves closer to becoming a Clipper
Published 7/2/2008 by Kelly Dwyer at Ball Don't Lie
... has developed some cold feet. Artest told Marc Stein via email that, he thinks he "made the biggest mistake by staying in my contract and I have to live with it. I had some misleading information [in making the] decision on not opting out." ...

Ron Artest Is Still Crazy After All These Years Days Hours
Published 7/2/2008 by Will Brinson at FanHouse
Filed under: Kings, Western, NBA Gossip, NBA Media Watch If that whole idea of a professional athlete taking less money to land in a competitive situation freaked you out for a little while, well, fear not -- Ron Artest is here to assure you that everything in this totally twisted world is still right. How so, you ask? He sent an email to Marc Stein tonight stating that deciding not to opt out of his contract was a "mistake". Artest also conceded that his long-term future is likely not in ...

Stakes raised for Sam Mitchell
Published 7/2/2008 by Arsenalist at Arsenalist
... Let’s start off with Ron Artest. Quote from Monday: “Not opting out, the Kings have been there for me, so the best I could do is stay in my contract.” Quote from Tuesday: “I don’t see myself with [the] Kings beyond 2008-09. I think I made the biggest mistake by staying in my contract and I have to live with it.” ‘Nuf said about how volatile this guy is. As mentioned yesterday and further confirmed today, Jose Calderon has signed a new ...

Quick Change of Heart For Ron-Ron
Published 7/2/2008 at CelticsBlog - NBA Section
There's nothing quite like a bit of Ron Artest drama to help get the summer rolling. On Monday, Artest exercised his option to stay with the Kings next season. On Tuesday, he wished he hadn't. As reported by ESPN 's Marc Stein: Artest told ESPN.com on Tuesday that he wishes now he had opted for unrestricted free agency, like Brand and Davis, instead of electing to play out the final year of his contract with the Kings next season at $7.4 million. Artest also conceded that his long-term future is likely not in Sacramento, saying via e-mail: "I don't see myself with ...

Silence is Golden
Published 7/2/2008 by Rob Mahoney (noreply@blogger.com) at Upside and Motor
... Well. How 'bout that free agency period! So much commotion has gone down in FA's opening moments that it's absolutely ridiculous. Baron and Elton Brand opt out. Antawn Jamison gets his deal. Beno Udrih gets the full midlevel. Jose Calderon gets a raise with the Raps. Ron Artest reconsiders not opting out. And of course, the big one: Baron Davis is, reportedly, now a Clipper. !!! ...

Ron Artest Is A Hypocrite
Published 7/2/2008 by George at SportsTsar.com
... After the recent opt-out frenzy where Elton Brand decided to take less money in order to land another big fish, Baron Davis, Ron Artest now says he regrets his decision to remain a member of the Sacramento Kings. ...

Ron Artest and His Regrets
Published 7/2/2008 by Marcel Mutoni at SLAM Online
by Marcel Mutoni When the clock struck midnight on July 1, and the free agency period officially kicked off, all hell predictably broke loose. Guys opted out of their deals, teams threw insane amounts of money at them, and those who didn’t opt out were left shaking their heads in disbelief. Ron Artest, for instance. “I don’t see myself with [the] Kings beyond 2008-09.” “I think I made the biggest mistake by staying in my contract and I have to live with it,” Artest said. “I had ...

Monday Bullets
Published 7/7/2008 at ESPN.com - True Hoop - Blog
... Ron Artest told ESPN's Marc Stein last week that he was kicking himself for not opting out of the final year of his contract and bypassing his chance to become an unrestricted free agent. On Monday, Artest sent a follow-up to Stein and two Sacramento reporters, saying he still regrets the decision to play out the final season of his contract at $7.4 million in 2008-09 but apologizes to the Kings for suggesting that they misled him. "I made the comment about making a mistake on my opt-out clause because I really did make a mistake," Artest wrote. "I ...

Mavs Refuse to Deal Pot-Smoking Josh Howard to the Kings for Problem-Child Ron Artest
Published 7/18/2008 by TheBigLead at The Big Lead
... and owner of some of the sweetest haircuts in NBA history - will not be traded to the Dallas Mavericks. The Sacramento Bee and Dallas Morning News are reporting that the Kings wanted Josh “Reefer Madness” Howard in return, and Mark Cuban balked. Cubes was more than willing to part with Brandon Bass and Jerry Stackhouse, but that wasn’t enough. If you’re a Kings fan, shouldn’t you get what you can for Ron-Ron now, since he’s in the final year of his contract? ...

Ron Artest to Houston?
Published 7/30/2008 by Jim at Green Bandwagon: Front Page Posts
... 4. Not too long ago Ron Artest said that not opting out of his contract was a mistake. As a result his current situation is somewhat similar to Bonzi Wells' from a few years ago. Remember Wells got some awful advice and ended up leaving a lot of money on the table. While their cases are not exactly the same, both Artest and Wells went from Sacramento to Houston, after some poor decisions. Just throwing that out there. And who was Wells eventually traded for - Bobby Jackson. As a side note, in searching the ...